Candidate named to college board

NEWS

by Seth Hemmelgarn

San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee named a candidate running for the
City College board as a trustee Tuesday, instantly giving him a possible advantage
in the race by running as an appointed incumbent.

The mayor named structural engineer Rodrigo Santos, 54, to
serve out the remaining few months of Trustee Milton Marks III's term on the
San Francisco Community College board. Marks died earlier this month of a brain
tumor.

The appointment, which the mayor announced at a City Hall
news conference, comes as San Francisco City College, which the trustees
oversee, faces the possibility of closing.

Lee indicated he sees Santos as being crucial to help the school
survive.

"Ninety thousand students come through City College and
we cannot let that fail. We will not let that fail," Lee said Tuesday.

Santos said he'd do "everything in my power" to
make sure the trustees follow "the great work of Milton Marks." However,
he said, "I join an institution that must be saved."

The college's future as an accredited community college, the
largest of all accredited community colleges in California with about 90,000
students, has been in question since early June, after the Accrediting
Commission for Community and Junior Colleges issued a blistering report saying
CCSF would need to "show cause why its accreditation should not be
terminated" by October 15, according to a report sent to interim
Chancellor Pamila Fisher in July, or lose its accreditation. That's a loss that
many fear could close CCSF's doors for good.

The report, highlighting that City College is poorly run,
aimed to have the school meet a few of the eligibility requirements for state
accredited colleges. Among them, to document a funding base and plan for how to
bring in future financial resources, conduct audits, and bring in an
administrative staff with "appropriate experience to support necessary
services for an institution of its size, mission, and purpose," the ACCJC
report said.

"Tough decisions and reforms are what City College
needs at this time," Lee said. He added, "We need someone who shares
my vision of reform," and the school "will not lose its accreditation
with Rodrigo's help."

Santos said he's "absolutely committed to that
goal." Similarly to Lee, Santos also referred to the "difficult
reforms that are going to be required," but didn't offer any specifics. He
did say that he and other trustees would analyze things and make sure that
"no money is being wasted."

Santos, who introduced his wife, Ginny, and children, Alex
and Adriana, Tuesday, is a professional engineer who came to the United States
from Ecuador. According to the mayor's office, he's developed mixed-use spaces,
office complexes, apartment buildings, and hotels.

He's also served as president of the city's Building
Inspection Commission and is currently on the Workforce Investment Board.

Former GOPer

According to the Department of Elections, Santos is a former
Republican, having registered as such in 2000. In 2008 he switched to the
American Independent Party, a far-right group that people often mistake when
they want to register as an "independent." In 2011, according to
elections department records, Santos registered as a Democrat.

Santos's appointment puts him in the top tier of candidates;
three incumbents are also running, as is gay attorney Rafael Mandelman. There
are four seats up in November; the board has seven members. Santos quickly put
the mayor's press release announcing his appointment up on his campaign
website.

In a statement issued Tuesday night, Santos touted his
endorsements, including that of gay District 8 Supervisor Scott Wiener.

Mandelman, a leading college board candidate who secured the
local Democratic Party's endorsement last week, said in a phone interview Tuesday
that he hadn't been hoping for an appointment himself. (Mandelman is an elected
member of the Democratic County Central Committee and ran unsuccessfully for D8
supervisor two years ago.)

However, he said, it's "interesting the appointment
wasn't someone with a deeper, longer connection to the college; that the
decision seems to have been driven more by political calculation than by
necessarily thinking about what's in the interest of the school at a particularly
critical time."

Mandelman mentioned Santos's involvement with the San
Francisco Coalition for Responsible Growth, which he described as a
"moderate to conservative political organization." Santos is the
group's president.

The coalition's website says it's "a broad-based
organization" representing architects, artists, business owners, and
others and is "dedicated to creating an effective coalition that fosters
well planned growth by addressing the needs and concerns of all
stakeholders."

At Tuesday's news conference, Santos responded to a question
about the organization by saying it's "extremely diverse." Lee said
Santos's business background made him an asset to the board.

Mandelman said, "I know he has a larger agenda for San Francisco
that I disagree with, and I'm sure he disagrees with mine, but if we end up
serving together on the board, I'm sure we'll work together and do good things
for the school."